Grazing Districts in Utah

The Taylor Grazing Act (TGA) of 1934 gave the Secretary of the Interior the authority to establish grazing districts which in his opinion are chiefly valuable for grazing and raising of forage crops. The Division of Grazing worked with local ranchers and governments to develop grazing policy and establish the boundaries of eight grazing disticts in Utah. These grazing districts were designated through the TGA during 1935 and included all BLM lands in Utah. Section 7 of the TGA anticipated the disposal of these lands, but in order to promote their highest and best use required that prior to their disposal they first be classified as something other than chiefly valuable for grazing and the raising of forage crops.

Utah BLM lands were divided into eight grazing districts. The original BLM Distict Office boundaries generally followed these grazing district boundaries. These District Office boundaries were modified over the years and were elimated in 1999 and replaced with eleven new Field Office boundaries. In 2009, four new District Offices and one National Monument were established and the Field Office boundaries were maintained. The original grazing district boundaries remained unchanged over time.

The Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) of 1974 stated that it is the policy of the United States to retain public lands and that they be managed for mulitple use. FLPMA also established land use planning proceedures to determine if the disposal of public lands serves the national interest.